Feeder for clover-hulling machines



N0. 6l8,45l. .PatentedJanfBI, I899.

F. T. WRIGHT. I FEEDER FOR CLOVER HULLING MACHINES.

(Application filed. Feb. 12, 1898.)

(No Model.)

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FEEDER FOR CLOVER-HULLING MACHINES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N 0. 618,451, dated January31, 1899.

Application filed February 12, 1898. Serial No. 670,016. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, FRANCIS T. WRIGHT, a citizen of the United States,residing at Edinburg, in the county of Johnson, in the State of Indiana,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Automatic Feedersfor Olover-Hulling Machines; and I do hereby declare that the followingis a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, which willenable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and usethe same reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which formpart of this specification.

Myinvention relates to improvements in automatic feeders forclover-hulling machines.

It is well known that the customary manual operation of feeding dryclover into a cloverhulling machine is dangerous and unhealthful to theoperator and that the attempt to automatically feed clover-hullers bymeans of an endless carrier or conveyer has proven unsatisfactory forthe reason that in feeding clover having long straw the carrier isunavoidably clogged and choked up by the straw, thus requiring theservice of an attendant, and that such feeding devices are not adaptedto be readily attached to old or ordinary machines.

The object, therefore, of my presentinvention is to provide a cheapportable automatic feeding attachment for clover-hulling machines havinga positive feeding movement feeding direct to the threshing-cylinderwithout danger of clogging, easily operated, and adapted to beconveniently attached to any ordinary clover-hulling machine by making aslight change in the front side of the hopper.

My invention consists generically ina traveling push-bar movable over afixed table in cooperative relation'with the threshing-cylinder, andspecifically in a push-bar or feeding device pivotally mounted at oneend to a rotary shaft driven by power, the said feeding device having asemicircular sweep over the feeding-table and being directed in itsvertical movements by a circular track whose sections are in varyingplanes and adapted for a direct positive movement.

The novel feature of my invention consists in providing a positive anddirect feeding device for clover-hulling machines having a mode offeeding closely resembling the manual operation and adapted to preventall danger of clogging or choking thereof.

In the accompanying drawings, in which similar reference numeralsindicate like parts throughout the several views, Figure 1 is a feedingdevice, showing its pivotal connection with the actuating-shaft.

Upon the forward end 1 of any proper hulling-machine is revolublymounted in the usual or other proper manner a suitablethreshing-cylinder 2, having proper journalbearings 3. To the saidforward end 1 and immediately adjacent to the threshing-cylinder ishinged in any prope rmanner a table 4, preferably of sheet metal, havingan upright flange 5 upon its outer end and one side thereof. Upon theother side of the said table is arranged a proper base 6, which may bearranged either upon said table or at one side thereof and rigidlysupported from the machine.

Upon the outer end of the base 6 is rigidly fixed the pedestal 7, havinga proper journalbearing 8 for thehorizontal power-shaft 10, having uponits outer end a proper belt-pulley 16, connected to any desiredpower-transmitting pulley upon the machine.

Upon the outer edge of the pedestal 7 rises a proper supporting-standconsisting of an upright hemispherical basal flange 9, preferablyintegral with said pedestal and having an upright integral sleeve 11,provided upon its up-. per end with a horizontal annular flange 12, uponthe upper face of which is rigidly fixed a circular track23,11ereinafter to be described. In this upright sleeve 11 is rotatablymounted the vertical shaft 13, having upon its lower end the rigidbevel-gear 14, adapted for a meshing engagement with the smaller bevelgear-wheel l5, rigidly fixed upon the inner end of said power-shaft 10.The upper ex* tremity of the vertical shaft 13 is angular to better forma holding engagement with the coupling 17, having a central rectangularopening 18, Fig. 4:, to receive the said upper end of the shaft 13, andis firmly secured in position by a proper set-screw 19. This coupling 17is providedwith a pair of horizontal lateral parallel lugs 22, havingbetween them a bifurcation adapted to loosely receive the upper end ofthe arm 20, which is pivotally secured therein by the transverse pin orbolt 21, thereby afiording a limited vertical play of said arm 20.

The annular metallic track 23 has that portion thereof adjacent to thethreshing-cylinder abruptly elevated, as shown in Fig. 1, and is rigidlysecured to said annular flange 12 by proper holding-bolts (not shown)and by the supporting-braces 24. This track 23 has upon its oppositeedges proper vertical flanges 25, thus forming a central groove orrecess upon the upper face of said track, adapted to contain thetraveling roller 26, which is pivotally mountedin the hanger 27, whichin turnis pivotally mounted in a second bifurcated hanger 28, having ashank 29, adapted to be secured in a suitable opening in said arm 20 bymeans of a washer and a holding-nut upon its screw-threaded extremity.The rake-arm 20, Fig. 1, normally oblique in arrangement to the saidshaft 13, has a horizontal integral portion at its upper and inner end,as shown, so pivoted, as described, to the upper end of the verticalshaft 13 as to permit a limited vertical adjustment of the feedingdevice upon the outer end thereof, hereinafter described, as the saidroller 26 makes its circuit upon the said flanged track 23. To the loweror outer extremity of the said handle 20 is rigidly bolted or otherwisefixed the horizontal push-bar 30, adapted to sweep the said table 4 inits rotary swinging movement about the revoluble shaft 13, upon which itis fixed, and thereby automatically feed the contents of said table tothe hulling-cylinder. The union of the said push-bar 30 with itsoperating-handle is still further braced and strengthened by the rods31, 32, and 33, Fig. 1.

The above description refers particularly to that form of constructionshown in Fig. l, the operation of which is obvious and, briefly stated,is as follows: The fixed belt-pulley 16,

. being connected with a proper sou-roe of power,

when set in motion rotates the power-shaft 10 and its rigid bevelgear-wheel in the same direction as that of thethreshingcylinder,thereby actuating the bevel gear-wheel14 and the shaft13, which carries with it the pivoted push-bar 30 in its sweep over thetable 4, in the same direction as that of the hands of a clock, by whichmovement the clover which is first deposited by the operator upon saidtable 4 is by a regular and positive movement fed directly to the saidthreshing-cylinder. As the annular track 23 has that portion adjacent tothe threshing-cylinder abruptly elevated and as the arm 20 has a pivotedconnection with both the shaft 13 and the traveling roller 26, it isobvious that when the said roller enters upon the elevated portion ofsaid track the push-bar 30 will be proportionally elevated, the pin 21serving as a fulcrum for the handle 20 of said push-bar in its verticaladjustment. By this means the said push-bar or feeding device has a fullsweep of the table at from its point of entrance thereon, as shown inFig. 1, to the point of exit therefrom, which is a sufficient distancefrom the front face of said cylinder to properly escape the same,thereby presenting a direct and positive feeding movement without anypossibility of clogging. Obviously aplurality of said push-bars may, ifdesired, be mounted on said shaft 13, all identical in construction andmode of operation.

It is obvious that my construction may be variously modified withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope of my invention, which consists inproviding an automatic feeder for clover-hulling machines, comprising afixed table adjacent to the threshing-cylinder, a traveling push-bar ora plurality of bars mov ing over said table in cooperative relation withsaid cylinder, and means for actuating the said push-bar.

Having thus described my invention and the manner of employing the same,what I desire to secure by Letters Patent is- A clover-hulling machineprovided with a threshing-cylinder 2, a fixed feed-table 4 connected tosaid hulling-machine and provided with an upright flange 5 upon itsouter edge, and rounded at its outer end; a supportingstand arrangedupon one side of the table, a vertical shaft 13, mounted in said standand provided with a driving-wheel 14:, at its lower end, and adriving-shaft provided with a driving-wheel at its outer end and apinion at its inner one, combined with the arm 20 pivoted upon the upperend of the vertical shaft, a supporting-roller loosely connected to saidarm, a cam-surface over which said roller travels for the purpose ofraising and lowering the arm, and suitable push-bars connected to thelower end of the arm, and which bars are adapted to be raised andlowered by the roller and the cam, substantially as shown and described.

Signed by me, at Fort Wayne, Allen county, State of Indiana, this 5thday of February, A. D. 1898.

FRANCIS T1 VVRIGIIT.

Witnesses:

MINNIE WEIL, Rosn N. STARKEL.

